Rubber fabric for heels or the like.



No. 723,876. PATEN'I'ED MAR. 31, 1903.

M. A. KENNEDY. RUBBER FABRIC FOR HEELS OR THE LIKE.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 30, 1900.

30 MODEL.

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UNr'rED STATEs FFICE.

P TENT RUBBER FABRIC FOR HEELS OR THE LIKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 723,876, dated March31, 1903.

Application filed November 30, 1900. Serial No. 38,085. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, MICHAEL A.'KENNEDY, a British subject, and aresident of Boston, county of Suffolk,.' Massachusetts, have inventedcertain newand useful Improvements in RubberFabrics for Heels or theLike, of which the following is a specification.

My invention comprises certain improvements in rubber fabrics by which Iam able to produce a fabric of this class having highly elastic andresil'ient'properties in which is secured the greatest attainable degreeof compressibility without materially sacrificing the permanence ordurability of the fabric. The form of this fabric herein shown isespecially suitable for cushion'heels and soles for shoes and is alsovaluable for other purposes'in which the properties which it possessesare desirable. I

Generally speaking, the fabric consists o a piece of vulcanized rubbercomprising a relatively firm or solid exterior face combined with arelatively yielding and elastic interior portion. A marked feature ofthis interior portion consists in a construction charaoter-' ized by aseries of passages or cells so arranged on either side of an interveningor intermediate elastic webor wall that the compression of the fabric,distends or stretches the web, so that the original form of the fabricis restored by the retractile or elastic properties of stretched rubber.

Another improved feature of the invention consists in forming the fabricwith a relatively yielding interior or center portion and a relativelyfirm or solid wearing face, said wearing-face having embedded withinitself strips of textile fabric set edgewise to the wearing-surface.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated but a single form of myimproved fabric, and it will be understood that variations in theparticular construction and arrangement may be made without departingfrom the spirit of my invention. 4

Figure l is a bottom plan View of a rubber heel for s hoes'embodying theprinciples of my invention. Fig. .2 is a sectional plan view viewed fromthe bottom, the plane of said view being indicated by broken line 2 2 inFig. 3: Fig. 3 is a central transverse section. Fig. 4 is a centrallongitudinal section of the heel. Fig. 5 is a plan view partly brokenaway to show the peculiar cellular construction of .the fabric. Fig. 6is a perspective view looking down upon the top of the fabric, the cellsin this instance being made rectangulaiginstead of round in order tomore clearly mark the distinctions between the continuous walls or websand their short intermediate webs.

In its main features the heel comprises a relatively firm or solidbottom wall a, side walls I), and a central portion 0, so constructed asto possess a relatively high degree of compressibility, so as to be muchmore yielding and elastic than the walls a and 1). Considered in itsbroadest aspects, I may employ any suitable construction that gives-arelatively high degree of yield or compressibility so long as I providea heel 'with relatively firm exterior walls combined with a relativelyyielding interior. In the preferred form of my invention, however, I soconstruct this interior portion that its compression results indistending or stretching the rubber, and its expansion or restoration toits normal state is effected by the tension or retractile force of thestretched rubber, as will be hereinafter explained, and this is a verymarked feature of my invention, for if agood quality of rubher be usedthe fabric instead of becoming broken'down and permanently compressedwill retain its original elasticity so long as the rubber itself retainsits elastic properties. The yielding centerportion c, as herein shown,comprises a series of oblique passages or cells a, separated bycomparatively thin elastic webs or walls 0 which, as shown, are alsoinclined at an angle to the bottom face or wall of the fabric. 7

By referring to Figs. 5 and 6 it will be noticed that the passages orcells a are arranged so as to form straight rows across the heel, sothat the cells of each row or series are staggered with reference tothecells of the series immediately in front or immediately behind it.The effect of this arrangement is to form a series of continuous webs orwalls 0 running crosswise-of the heel and which in this instance areshown as oblique or inclined to the top and bottom of the heel, whichcontinuous Webs serve to separate the cells of the two adjacent series.These con- -in each series.

these short connecting-webs a sink into the oblique cells immediatelybehind them,which the webs c partly overhang. The compression of thefabric therefore results in stretching both the continuous web 0 and theconnecting-webs-c When the pressure is removed, the tension of thestretched rubber tends to pull the webs back into their normal position.This action will continue so long as the elasticity or stretch of therubber endures, and as in good qualities of rubber this will last for avery considerable time the fabric will retain its elasticity for a longperiod, and thus the tendency to break down and remain permanentlycompressed is overcome. The particular form and arrangement of the cellsand webs may be modified or changed without losing this property, solong as the fabric is characterized by a continuous web separating twoseries of cells having a relatively staggered arrangement, so that thecells of one series are in alinement with the dividing walls or webswhich separate the individual cells of the next series.

For convenience in distinguishing I may call the webs 0 which divide onewhole series of cells from the next, the continuous webs, and maydesignate the short webs 0 which form the dividing-walls separating theindividualcellsin the same series, as thecon necting-webs, since theyalso serve to connect the two adjacent webs.

In order to prevent the rapid wearing 01f of the bottom of the heel, Imay embed therein strips of canvas or textile material to form a moredurable wearing-surface. This canvas may be embedded in the rubber inany suitable manner; but I have herein shown an arrangement comprising aseries of parallel canvas strips a set edgewise to the bottom of theheel. It will be noticed, too, that this canvas insertion is set in alittle distance from the outer edge of the heel, so that the outer edgemay be given the surface finish, which could not he done as efiectivelyif the canvas projected to this outer surface. While I prefer thearrangement of canvas herein shown, it will be understood that I do notconfine myself to such an arrangement as that actually described.

As the heel will usually be fastened by means of nails or the like, Imay form the bottom portion With a series of nail-holes a and in orderto provide a firm seat for the heads of the nails I may employ aperforated stiffening-plate (l, which is embedded in the heel at aconsiderabledistance from the bottom surface, so that the heads of thefasteningnails may lie well within the wearing-surface of the heel.

It will be noticed that the compression of the heel causes the plate (1to play slightly up and down on the nails which are driven into theheel-seat of the shoe.

The top of the heel or fabric may be closed with a layer of textilefabric or other suitable material 6, which may be cemented or otherwisesecured to the top of the heel. This layer 6- serves to prevent unduespreading of the yielding or compressible portion of the heel and may atthe same time serve to confine air within the cclls 0, so that thenatural elasticity of the rubber is reinforced by the action of theconfined air when the heel is compressed. This pneumatic cushioning ofthe heel is a valuable feature and it will be noticed that the cells areindependent of each other, so that if one or more of them be puncturedthe remaining cells are not affected thereby.

While I have shown and described this fabric as made in the form of aheel for a shoe, it is of course obvious that it may be applied to manyuses other than that described in which a considerable degree ofresilience is desired.

Without attempting to set forth thevarious modifications in form andconstruction that may be made in the practice of my invention or all theuses to which said invention is applicable, what I claim is- 1. Aresilient fabric for heels or the like consisting of a strip ofvulcanized rubber comprising a relatively firm outer face and aninterior yielding portion characterized by one or more thin elastic websformingadividingwall between two series of cells or perforations soarranged that the compression of the fabric stretches the web bodilywhereby the fabric is restored to its original form by the retractileforce of the stretched web substantially as described.

2. A resilient fabric for heels comprising a piece of vulcanized rubberformed with a relativelyfirm exterior face and with a relativelyyielding and elastic interior portion containing a series of inclinedwebs separated by oblique passages or cells substantially as described.

3. A resilient fabric for heels or the like comprising a relativelyyielding and elastic center portion and a relatively firm or solidwearing-face said wearing-face having en1- bedded therein a strip oftextile fabric set edgewise to the wear-surface substantially asdescribed.

4:. A resilient fabric for heels or the like comprising a relativelyyielding and elastic center portion and a relatively firm or solidwearing-face, said wearing -face having a piece of textile fabricembedded therein substantially as described.

5. A resilient fabric for a heel comprising a yielding interior portionand a relatively firm or solid face, said face having textile fabricembedded therein at some distance from the edge of the heel,substantially as described.

6. A resilient fabric for a heel comprising a yielding portion and arelatively firm or solid face, and a perforated plate embedded in thesolid face some distance below the surface of that face to provide aseat for the fastening-nails substantially as described.

7. Aresilientfabric comprisingarelatively firm or solid layer ofvulcanized rubber and another layer containing series of cells orpassages separated by an intermediate web, the cells on one side of theintermediate web being ofiset or staggered with reference to the cellson the other side of said web substantially as described.

8. An elastic collapsible fabric characterized by a series of obliqueelastic webs extending in one direction of the fabric and a series ofelastic webs arranged to connect the oblique webs at intervals, therespective webs of each series being separated by oblique cells formedbetween them.

9. An elastic collapsible fabric containing a series of oblique websextending in one direction of the fabric and separated from each otherby a series of cells, short transverse elastic Webs arranged, toseparate the individual cells of each series and to connect the obliqueWebs, the cells on one side -of the oblique web being in line with theconnecting- Webs on the other side of said web, substantially asdescribed.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 26th day ofNovember, 1900.

M. A. KENNEDY.

In presence of GEO. N. GODDARD, KATHARINE A. DUGAN.

